Spinner for a particulate material spreader

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for broadcasting particulate or granular material over a ground surface involves a variable speed spinner and a material conveyor. The spinner is positioned generally horizontally below a discharge end of a material conveyor. The spinner has a disk having a generally radially disposed fin fixed to an upper side of the disk and radiating outwardly from a center of the disk. The spinner is positioned to receive material from the material conveyor at a location about half way along a length of the fin. In a method broadcasting particulate or granular material over a ground surface, the spinner is preferably rotated at a speed of 900 to 1,000 rpm. The apparatus and method provide for distribution of material over greater distances and can do so without pulverizing the material, creating a uniform pattern of distribution over a 50% wider swath.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/505,663 filed Feb. 22, 2017, which is a U.S. National Stage under 35USC 371 of International Patent Application PCT/IB2015/056366 filed Aug.22, 2015, which claims the benefit of United States Provisional PatentApplication U.S. Ser. No. 62/040,515 filed Aug. 22, 2014, the entirecontents of each of which are herein incorporated by reference.

FIELD

The present invention relates to an improved spreader system of the typeused to mix and distribute particulate material ingredients, such as drybulk material, and broadcast them over a ground surface such as anagricultural field.

BACKGROUND

It is generally known to provide a system for spreading or broadcastingparticulate material, such as fertilizer, lime and fertilizersupplements, over a ground surface. For example, U.S. Patent US2003/0192967 to Rissi discloses a spreader system for particulatematerial including an adjustable spinner. The adjustable spinner isincrementally adjustable forwardly and rearwardly to a plurality ofoperating positions relative to the discharge end of a materialconveyor. The adjustment may be manual or automatic to adjust the droppoint of the material onto the optimum location on the spinner system,thereby accommodating varying application rates and patterns ofparticulate material distribution across the swath.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,380,733 to Owenby, et al. discloses a plural binmetering system for broadcasting material ingredients. Spinners areprovided rearwardly of the system for broadcasting the material. Thespinners are fixed in position, and their speed of rotation is variablycontrollable.

These devices are limited in their distribution of particulate matter.There is a need for equipment that is capable of spreading particulatematerials/ingredients over greater distances and without altering theparticulate makeup of the material for example without substantiallychanging the particulate size of the material or its size distribution.

SUMMARY

The spreader system of the present disclosure is designed to meet theaforementioned needs. More particularly, the present spreader systemprovides for distribution of particulate or granular material overgreater distances and can do so without pulverizing the material,creating a uniform pattern of distribution over a 50% wider swath. Itallows for spreading particulate material at distances greater than aneighty (80) foot swath up to a swath of one hundred twenty (120) feet ormore. For heavier materials such as lime, the distances can be as highas 60 feet or more, which is still greater than other spreaders forlime. Further, it is less complicated, costs less than existing devicesand is less expensive to maintain than other designs.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a spreader system andmethod is provided for broadcasting particulate or granular materialover a ground surface. The spreader system can include one or morespinners positioned generally horizontally below the discharge end of amaterial conveyor. Each spinner can be rotated by a motor. The motor canbe a variably controllable motor for controlling the rate of rotation ofthe spinner and therefore the broadcast pattern of the particulatematerial over the ground surface. Each spinner can include a disk andone or more fins fixed to the top or upper side of the disk. The one ormore fins are generally radially disposed on the top of the diskradiating outwardly from the center of the disk. The one or more finscan be fixed in an upwardly projecting or upright position generallyperpendicular to the top surface of the disk. The one or more fins arepreferably positioned exactly perpendicularly, i.e. at an angle of 90°to the top surface of the disk. A top edge portion of the fin can beangled relative to the perpendicular portion of the fin or, preferably,can maintain perpendicularity in a continuous fashion up to the topedge. Their orientation can be positioned radially outwardly from thecenter to the outer diameter, advanced 17° or retarded 17° in relationto a radial line, for example a radial line perpendicular to the topsurface of the disk, to provide additional versatility in patterncontrol, or anywhere in between. The disks can be, but need not be,dish-shaped, wherein the center of the disk can be below the horizontalplane of the periphery of the disk. The disk can be generally circularin shape and can have a diameter of about 24″ to about 36″. In one ormore aspects at least one fin can have a length of about 7″ to about20″, preferably about 7″ to about 17″, more preferably about 14″ toabout 18″. In one or more aspects at least one or more fins are radiallypositioned on the top of the disk such that the end(s) closest to thecenter of the disk (the “proximal end”) are approximately flush with thecenter shaft of the disk, thereby ensuring that all incoming materialsare captured by or directed onto the fins for uniform acceleration. Invarious aspects all of the fins can extend radially outwardly from thecenter of the disk beyond the periphery of the disk, such that theirdistal ends lie beyond the periphery of the disk.

The overall diameter of the spinner disks and fin lengths are configuredsuch that material to be spread enters the spinner system at a locationabout half way along the length of the fin and is caught by the fintraveling at a speeds of 60 to 70 feet per second and then acceleratesalong the length of the fins to an end of the fin's radial length toachieve the desired velocities of 110 to 157 feet per second, dependingon the desired swath width. For example, spinner disks and fin lengthsmay be configured such that material to be spread enters the spinnersystem approximately 7″ to 9″ radially from the center of the disk. Thematerial may be caught by the fin traveling at a speeds of 60 to 70 feetper second and then accelerates along the length of the fins to a radiallength to 14″ to 18″ to achieve the desired velocities of 110 to 157feet per second, depending on the desired swath width. The fins areavailable in various lengths and can be interchanged to achieve desireddistribution swath widths. With this design, the material travels fromthe discharge conveyor through the flow divider onto the spinners in alaminar like flow and accelerates to the desired velocity to achieve awider, yet uniform spread pattern. As the operator decides what spreadswath width is desired, he/she then chooses a particular length of finsto attach and sets the spinner rpms accordingly. The spinner can be ofvariable speed achieved through use of, for example, a variable speedhydraulic motor and can be adjusted to speeds in the range of 700 to1,100 rpm, preferably 900 to 1,100 rpm, more preferably 900 to 1,000rpm, for example about 1,000 rpm. This design achieves spread patternsthat are 40% to 50% wider than traditional designs.

In another non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, thespreader system is designed to be incorporated with a material binsystem. The bin system of this embodiment includes one or moreparticulate material ingredient bins or hoppers. The hoppers can berectangular shaped with a tapered or trapezoidal bottom portion whenseen in end view. Each hopper can have associated with it a materialmetering device for independently controlling the rate of metering ordischarge of particulate material held within its associated hopper withrespect to the discharge of particulate material from the one or morehoppers. The metering device of at least one, if not all, of theparticulate material hoppers can be controllable allowing the rate ofdischarge of particulate material from the hopper(s) to be varied asdesired.

One or more take away conveyors can be disposed below and extendrearwardly of the one or more hoppers for receiving particulate materialdischarged from the hopper(s). Particulate material discharged from thehopper(s) can be discharged onto the one or more take away conveyors. Ina non-limiting example, more than one take away conveyor can beprovided. Also more than one hopper can be provided. Each hopper can beprovided with an independently variably controllable metering device,thereby allowing variable control rate of discharge of material from thehopper(s). Each hopper can discharge its material onto a take awayconveyor solely associated with the given hopper, can discharge itsmaterial collectively onto a single take away conveyor, or combinationthereof.

The take away conveyor(s) can receive the particulate materialdischarged from the one or more hoppers and deliver the material to thespreader system for spreading or broadcasting the material ingredientsover a ground surface.

Means can be provided for individually controlling the discharge ratesof the particulate material from the hopper(s) as well as the dischargerate of combined particulate material to be spread or broadcast over aground surface. Each hopper can have its own individual metering devicefor controlling the rate of discharge of particulate material from ahopper independently of the rate of discharge of particulate materialfrom any other hopper. Additionally, the rate at which the combinedparticulate material is discharged and the resulting distributionpattern can be controlled by controlling the rate at which the take awayconveyor(s) operate either alone or in conjunction with controlling therate of rotation of the spinners of the spreader system, respectively.Some or all of the aforementioned parameters can be computer controlledby an operator of the spreader to achieve the optimum combination ofspreading rate and distribution for one or more particulate materials.In this manner, when two or more hoppers are used to distribute multiplematerial ingredients, both the ratio of the multiple particulatematerial ingredients can be controlled as well as the overall dischargerate of a combination of particulate material ingredients.

Other spreader systems, devices, features and advantages of thedisclosed system will be or become apparent to one with skill in the artupon examination of the following drawings and detailed description. Itis intended that all such additional systems, devices, features, andadvantages be included within this description, be within the scope ofthe present invention, and be protected by the accompanying claim(s).

Further features will be described or will become apparent in the courseof the following detailed description. It should be understood that eachfeature described herein may be utilized in any combination with any oneor more of the other described features, and that each feature does notnecessarily rely on the presence of another feature except where evidentto one of skill in the art.

DRAWINGS

For clearer understanding, preferred embodiments will now be describedin detail by way of example, with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. The components of the drawings are not necessarily to scale,emphasis instead being placed on clearly illustrating the principles ofthe present invention. Moreover, in the drawings, like referencenumerals do not need corresponding parts throughout the several views.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a spreadersystem of the present disclosure, taken from the rear of the system.

FIG. 2 is a rear elevational view of the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a right side elevational view of the system illustrated inFIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a sectional perspective view of the spreader systemillustrated in FIGS. 1-4.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of an exemplary pair of spinners of anembodiment of a spreader system of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring more specifically to the drawings in which like referencenumerals refer to like elements throughout the several views, anexemplary non-limiting embodiment of a spreader system of the presentdisclosure is illustrated in FIGS. 1-6. An embodiment of a spreadersystem is illustrated for broadcasting particulate or granular materialover a ground surface. In the figures the spreader system includes oneor more spinners 10. Each spinner can be operated by a drive motor 10 a.The drive motor can be a variable speed motor allowing for adjustment ofthe rate of operation of its associated spinner 10 for distribution orbroadcast of particulate material ingredients.

As illustrated, spinners 10 are in the form of disks 10 b positionedbelow and off the end of take away conveyor 6. The disks can be, butneed not be, positioned substantially horizontally with respect to theconveyor 6. The disks 10 b may be flat or, preferably, concave. Eachdisk 10 b is mounted on a generally vertically disposed shaft 10 c withthe disk 10 b positioned generally parallel to the surface on which thematerial ingredients are to be distributed. Disks 10 b are designed forrotation about shafts 10 c. Drive motors 10 a are operably connected toshafts 10 c for controlling the rate of rotation of spinners 10 andthereby the rate of distribution of material ingredients from spinners10 over a ground surface below.

Each disk 10 b can include one or more fins 10 d to assist indistributing material ingredients from spinners 10. The one or more fins10 d can be fixed to the top or upper side of the disk 10 b. In variousaspects, the one or more fins 10 d can be fixed in an upwardlyprojecting or upright position. For example, the one or more fins 10 dcan be positioned generally perpendicular to the top surface of the disk10 b. The one or more fins need not be positioned exactly perpendicular,i.e. at an angle of 90° to the top surface of the disk. An exemplaryembodiment of a pair of spinners is depicted in FIG. 6. As illustratedin FIG. 6, their orientation can be positioned outwardly from the centerto the outer diameter, advanced forward 17° or retarded back 17° inrelation to a line perpendicular to the top surface of the disk, oranywhere in between, to provide additional versatility in patterncontrol. The disks 10 b can be generally circular in shape and can havea diameter of about 24″ to about 36″. The one or more fins 10 d can beradially positioned on the top of the disk 10 a so the fins extendradially outwardly from the center of the disk 10 b. At least one of thefins 10 d radiates outwardly from the center of the disk 10 b beyond theperiphery of the disk. In one or more aspects the at least one fin canhave a length of about 7″ to about 17″.

In one or more embodiments, the aforementioned spreader system can beincorporated with a material bin system. The bin system can include aparticulate material ingredient hopper 7. In one or more aspects, thebin system can include one or more additional hoppers as depicted forexample in U.S. Pat. No. 7,380,733, which is incorporated by referenceas if fully set forth herein. The additional hopper(s) can be and one ormore secondary material ingredient hopper(s). For example, two secondaryparticulate material ingredient hoppers can be provided. The secondarymaterial ingredient hoppers can be positioned rearwardly of hopper 7.Hopper 7 can be a primary particulate material ingredient hopper. Theone or more hopper(s) can be supported by a frame 14 including supportrails 15. Each hopper can have generally converging walls leading to adischarge port, allowing for gravitational feed and discharge ofparticulate material ingredients contained within each respectivehopper. The hopper(s) can be generally designed for holding anddischarging dry, bulk granular materials such as but not limited tofertilizer, fertilizer supplements, herbicides, insecticides,fungicides, soil pH adjusting materials, micronutrients, and the like.The hopper(s) can be fixed to rails 15 or can be selectively removable.

A controllable metering system can be provided for any one or allhoppers provided. In a non-limiting example, the hopper 7 includes atransition box 4 into which its particular material flows. The materialfrom the transition box 4 is discharged to take away conveyor 6, such asa bed chain conveyor or chain mesh conveyor that directs the particulatematerial to rear roller 1. Rear roller 1 can serve to deliver thematerial ingredients to the spreader system including the one or morespinners 10 that serve to distribute or broadcast the particulatematerial over a ground surface, such as an agricultural field, foodplots within wooded areas, turf and golf course applications andvineyards.

Rear roller 1 can be operated by a gear case and one or more hydraulicmotors 1 a. Rear roller 1 can serve to drive the take away conveyor 6.Thus, adjusting the speed of rotation of roller 1 by hydraulic motor 1 acan serve to control the speed of the take away conveyor 6. In otheraspects a plurality of take away conveyors can be provided, for exampleone for each hopper, when multiple hoppers are provided.

FIG. 3 is a right side view of the system of FIGS. 1 and 2. This figureillustrates a side elevational view of hopper 7. In one or more aspectsprimary material ingredient hopper 7 can include a metering devicecomprising a gate (as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,380,733) for controllingthe rate of discharge of particulate material therefrom. The gate may belowered to a near closed position for minimal discharge of material fromhopper 7, or alternatively may be fully opened, or positioned somewherebetween fully opened and fully closed. In an exemplary embodiment thegate can be positioned by manual settings. The position of gate alongwith the speed of take away conveyor 6 affects the rate of discharge ofmaterial from hopper 7. Rail extensions 12 can be provided to facilitatethe spinner motors 10 a being mounted farther apart due to the longerfins and larger spinner system diameters.

FIG. 2 illustrates a rear elevational view of the spreader system.Material discharged from the hopper 7 onto conveyor 6 is fed to rearroller 1. Spinners 10 can be fixed in position in relation to rearroller 1. Flow divider 13 can be positioned between rear roller 1 andspinners 10. The flow divider 13 serves to receive material fromconveyor 6 and roller 1 and to direct the flow of the particulatematerial onto spinners 10. In an aspect where two spinners are providedas illustrated, flow divider 13 directs the material off of each of itssides to each of the spinners. Of course, if only spinner is providedflow divider 13 may not be desired. The spreader system can also includea protective frame 17 fixed to the rear of the frame 14 of the binsystem and positioned about the spreader system to protect the spreadersystem. The protective frame 17 can include a pan 18 positionedunderneath the spinners 10 to collect overflow material not collected bythe pinners 10.

In one or more other aspects, one or more secondary material ingredienthoppers can be positioned rearwardly of a primary ingredient hopper 7.Their converging walls can lead to transition box 4 that can includemetering rollers. Take away conveyor 6 can be positioned below hopper 7for receiving materials discharged from the hopper, for example throughthe gate. In an exemplary embodiment conveyor 6 extends longitudinallyunderneath hopper 7 and beyond its gate to the rear of the frame 14.Metering rollers can be positioned longitudinally along the frame 14,rearward of the gate for hopper 7 and above conveyor 6. Thus, materialdischarged by the metering rollers from the one or more materialingredient hoppers can be received by conveyor 6. When materialingredients have been discharged from hopper 7 onto conveyor 6,ingredients discharged from the one or more secondary materialingredient hoppers can be discharged on top of the primary ingredientsfrom hopper 7 onto the same conveyor 6, as described and illustrated inU.S. Pat. No. 7,380,733. Conveyor 6 can direct the particulate materialto rear roller 1.

Accompanying the systems typically would be either a simplified fullhydraulic control system or an electronic control system, either ofwhich is available from numerous sources. These systems are intended tocontrol and adjust the discharge rate of the material from the one ormore hoppers. The systems can optionally control parameters of themetering device and spinner rotational speed to achieve a desired spreadpattern according to the density of material being spread and thematerial discharge rate. These controls control drive motor 1 a forroller 1 that drives take away conveyor 6 and discharges materials tothe one or more spinners 10, and in some cases may also control drivemotor(s) 10 a that serve to rotate spinner(s) 10. Additionally, thesecontrols can control drive motors that control the rate of rotation ofmetering rollers of any one or more material ingredient hoppersprovided. Thus, it can be seen the controller can control the rate ofdischarge of ingredients from any one or more secondary materialingredient hoppers and thus the ratio of the mixture of ingredients fromsecondary hoppers. Further, by controlling the rate of discharge ofingredients from secondary material ingredient hoppers, the ratio ofsecondary ingredients to the amount of primary ingredients dischargedfrom hopper 7 can be controlled. By controlling the rate of rotation ofrear roller 1, the rate of rotation of metering rollers, and/or theposition of the gate on primary hopper 7, the overall rate of dischargeof ingredients from all hoppers and the rate of broadcast of theseingredients onto a ground surface can be controlled.

Electronic controls are available for controlling the system and can besupplied by many suppliers of computerized rate controllers, provided bycompanies such as Trimble, Ag-Chem Equipment Co., Inc., Mid-Tech, RavenIndustries, or Micro-Track. Exemplary controls include the controlsystems disclosed in U.S. Patent RE 35,100, U.S. Pat. No. 6,198,986,U.S. Pat. No. 6,089,743, Hydraulic controls are also available, such asdisclosed in US 2011/0303312. Each of the foregoing references isincorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.

It can be seen from the above description that systems are provided thatallow the operator, with the aid of any one of numerous control systems,to spread one or more material ingredients at independently varying orfixed rates. Farmers or commercial applicators may apply, for example,three material ingredients, such as N, P, K. (nitrogen, phosphorous andpotassium), or at times two of these three and the third ingredientbeing one or more micronutrients such as trace elements (for example,boron, magnesium and/or sulfur), or a pH adjustment ingredient, such aslime. Further, the controls allow for different rates of discharging andbroadcasting material ingredients at different rates at differentlocations on the field.

The pattern of the particulate material broadcast from spinners 10 canbe fine tuned or adjusted by adjusting one or more of the rate ofrotation of the spinners 10, the position of the flow divider 13 thatdiverts a portion of the discharge of ingredients to one spinner andanother portion to the other spinner, and the position of the fins 10 don the spinners 10.

Where a range of values is provided, it is understood that eachintervening value, to the tenth of the unit of the lower limit unlessthe context dictates otherwise, between the upper and lower limit ofthat range and any other stated or intervening value in that statedrange, is encompassed within the disclosure. The upper and lower limitsof these smaller ranges may independently be included in the smallerranges and are also encompassed within the disclosure, subject to anyspecifically excluded limit in the stated range. Where the stated rangeincludes one or both of the limits, ranges excluding either or both arealso included in the disclosure.

Ratios, geometric units (such as but not limited to a length, radius ordiameter), amounts, and other numerical data may be expressed in a rangeformat. It is to be understood that such a range format is used forconvenience and brevity, and should be interpreted in a flexible mannerto include not only the numerical values explicitly recited as thelimits of the range, but also to include all the individual numericalvalues or sub-ranges encompassed within that range as if each numericalvalue and sub-range is explicitly recited. To illustrate, a ratio of onelength to another length of “about 0.1% to about 5%” should beinterpreted to include not only the explicitly recited ratio of about0.1% to about 5%, but also include individual ratios (e.g., 1%, 2%, 3%,and 4%) and the sub-ranges (e.g., 0.5%, 1.1%, 2.2%, 3.3%, and 4.4%)within the indicated range. In an embodiment, the term “about” caninclude traditional rounding according to significant figure of thenumerical value. In addition, the phrase “about ‘x’ to ‘y’” includes“about ‘x’ to about ‘y’”.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used havethe same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in theart to which this disclosure belongs. Although any methods and materialssimilar or equivalent to those described can also be used in thepractice or testing of the present disclosure, the preferred methods andmaterials are now described.

All publications and patents cited in this specification areincorporated by reference as if each individual publication or patentwere specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated byreference as if fully set forth herein and are incorporated by referenceto disclose and describe the methods and/or materials in connection withwhich the publications are cited. The citation of any publication is forits disclosure prior to the filing date and should not be construed asan admission that the present disclosure is not entitled to antedatesuch publication by prior disclosure. Further, the dates of publicationprovided could differ from the actual publication dates that may need tobe independently confirmed.

The afore-described systems are but exemplary embodiments of the presentdisclosure. Other embodiments may include as few as one hopper or morethan three hoppers for discharging their respective material ingredientsonto one or more take away conveyors 6. Additionally, metering rollerscan be provided for controlling discharge material ingredients from anyone or more secondary hoppers. Alternatively, each secondary hopper canhave its own individual metering box and/or roller. One or more spinners10 can be provided.

It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of thesystems, particularly any “preferred” embodiments are merely possibleexamples of implementations, merely set forth for a clear understandingof the principles of the invention. One skilled in the art will readilyrecognize that many variations and modifications may be made to theabove-described embodiment(s) without departing substantially from thespirit and principles of the invention. All such modifications andvariations are intended to be included herein within the scope of thisdisclosure and protected by the following claim(s).

The novel features will become apparent to those of skill in the artupon examination of the description. It should be understood, however,that the scope of the claims should not be limited by the embodiments,but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with thewording of the claims and the specification as a whole.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for broadcasting particulate orgranular material over a ground surface, the apparatus comprising: apair of variable-speed spinners and a material conveyor, the pair ofvariable-speed spinners being positioned below a discharge end of thematerial conveyor, wherein each of said pair of variable-speed spinnerscomprises a disk having a center that is below a horizontal planedefined by a periphery of the disk; a plurality of adjustableinterchangeable radially-disposed fins positioned on an upper side ofeach disk; and an adjustable flow divider between the material conveyorand the pair of variable-speed spinners for directing and adjusting aflow of material from the material conveyor onto the pair ofvariable-speed spinners.
 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, whereina position of the adjustable flow divider over the pair ofvariable-speed spinners is adjustable.
 3. The apparatus according toclaim 2, wherein the position of the adjustable flow divider isadjustable to deposit material from the flow of material on each of thepair of variable-speed spinners at a location that is about 7 inches toabout 9 inches radially from the center of the disk.
 4. The apparatusaccording to claim 2, wherein material deposited on the pair ofvariable-speed spinners is caught by a portion of each of the pluralityof fins traveling at a speed of 60 to 70 feet per second.
 5. Theapparatus according to claim 4, wherein the material accelerates along alength of the fin to a distal end of the fin to achieve a velocity of110 to 157 feet per second.
 6. The apparatus according to claim 2,wherein each of the plurality of fins has a top edge portion that isangled relative to a portion of the fin that is attached to the disk, atleast a portion of each of the plurality of fins extending beyond aperiphery of the disk.
 7. The apparatus according to claim 2, whereineach of the plurality of fins comprises a distal end that extendsradially beyond a periphery of the disk and a proximal end that isapproximately flush with a center shaft of the disk.
 8. The apparatusaccording to claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of fins is fixed inan upwardly projecting position that is generally perpendicular to a topsurface of the disk.
 9. An apparatus for broadcasting particulate orgranular material over a ground surface, the apparatus comprising: oneor more variable-speed spinners configured to be positioned generallyhorizontally below a discharge end of a material conveyor, each of theone or more spinners comprising a disk having one or more generallyradially-disposed fins fixed to an upper side of the disk, at least oneof the one or more generally radially-disposed fins having an adjustableangle relative to a radius of the disk; and an adjustable flow dividerconfigured to be positioned between the material conveyor and the one ormore variable-speed spinners for directing and adjusting a flow ofmaterial from the material conveyor onto the one or more variable-speedspinners.
 10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein each of theone or more fins comprises a distal end that extends radially beyond aperiphery of the disk and a proximal end that is approximately flushwith a center shaft of the disk.
 11. The apparatus according to claim10, wherein each of the one or more fins is fixed in an upwardlyprojecting position that is generally perpendicular to a top surface ofthe disk.
 12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein each of theone or more fins has a top edge portion that is angled relative to aportion of the fin that is attached to the disk, at least a portion ofthe fin extending beyond a periphery of the disk.
 13. The apparatusaccording to claim 12, wherein the disk is concave.
 14. A method ofbroadcasting particulate or granular material over a ground surface, themethod comprising: conveying a stream of particulate or granularmaterial to a rotating variable-speed spinner, the variable-speedspinner comprising a dish-shaped disk having a generallyradially-disposed fin on an upper side of the dish-shaped disk andradiating outwardly from a center of the dish-shaped disk; adjusting aposition of a flow divider in the stream of particulate or granularmaterial to permit depositing of material on the rotating variable-speedspinner at a selected location and adjusting the flow divider to adjustflow rate of the material to the rotating variable-speed spinner;depositing the material on the rotating variable-speed spinner at theselected location; and accelerating the material along a length of thefin to a distal end of the fin to broadcast the material on a groundsurface.
 15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the selectedlocation for depositing the material on the rotating variable-speedspinner is about 7 inches to about 9 inches radially from the center ofthe dish-shaped disk.
 16. The method according to claim 15, wherein therotating variable-speed spinner is rotated at a speed of 900 to 1,000rpm.
 17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the distal end of thefin extends radially beyond a periphery of the dish-shaped disk, andwherein the fin further comprises a proximal end that is approximatelyflush with a center shaft of the dish-shaped disk, and wherein the finis fixed in an upwardly projecting position that is generallyperpendicular to a top surface of the dish-shaped disk.
 18. The methodaccording to claim 17, wherein the fin has a top edge portion that isangled relative to a portion of the fin that is attached to thedish-shaped disk.
 19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the finhas an adjustable angle relative to a radial of the dish-shaped disk.20. The method according to claim 14, wherein the rotatingvariable-speed spinner is adjacent a second rotating variable-speedspinner having a second dish-shaped disk, and wherein each of thedish-shaped disk and the second dish-shaped disk comprises a pluralityof generally radially-disposed fins fixed to its upper side andradiating outwardly from its center.